


If You Ask Me

by AtowncalledMalec



Category: Shadowhunters (TV)
Genre: AU, Alec's POV, Character Study, Introspection, M/M, of Magnus Bane
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-13
Updated: 2019-08-13
Packaged: 2020-08-20 07:28:02
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 435
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20224090
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AtowncalledMalec/pseuds/AtowncalledMalec
Summary: I'm posting this late because I read the prompt incorrectly so it doesn't fully fit the prompt. I only saw 'boy next door' but I still wanted to post it. This is AU from Alec's POV. A small character study of Magnus.This work is not to be reposted anywhere else or translated without my permission.





	If You Ask Me

**Author's Note:**

  * In response to a prompt by Anonymous in the [sh_ficletinstruments](https://archiveofourown.org/collections/sh_ficletinstruments) collection. 

> **Prompt:**
> 
> Magnus and Ragnor have been best friends since childhood. After a tragic accident claims his friend's life Magnus can't seem to let go. Often finding himself parked in front of his friend's house, his world is turned upside down then he pulls up to find moving trucks in front of the house and someone new seems to have moved in.

If you ask anyone about the boy next door, they will tell you that he is the life and soul of the party. They will tell you that he has a joke and an outfit for any occasion, that he is full of innuendo, casual remarks and flirtatious lines. 

If you ask them about the boy next door, they would speak of the eyeliner and the smile, the face that he presents to the world like a mask. 

But they wouldn’t talk about the boy behind the mask. They don’t speak of the boy who picks them up when they fall, the boy who glues their pieces back together. They don’t tell of the boy who fights at their side, who would go to war on their behalf, simply because they hold a place in his life. 

They do not describe the way he hurts or the way he hides it or the way he sees his greatest strengths as weaknesses. They do not talk of the self-doubt that is his constant companion. 

But then again, they do not see the boy next door the way I do.

If you ask me about the boy next door, I would tell you of his bravery. I would speak of his strength, of the unbridled joy that he finds in the smallest of moments. I would tell you how he could save a person with his smile. 

I would tell you of the modesty that he hides behind his bravado and of the loneliness that was his life for too long. I would speak of the way he gives every piece of himself to and for those he cares for, without asking for a thing in return, without hesitation, without thought. 

If you ask me about the boy next door, I would tell you the story of his soul, of the effervescent beauty that encompasses his entire being. I would talk of the love and compassion that fills him until it overflows.

I would tell you of his resilience, of the way he fights, even when he fears he has nothing left to give. I would explain all the ways he captures a heart that is as brittle as his own and cherishes it more than it’s owner does.

If you asked me about the boy next door, I could describe the selflessness that he brushes aside as if it is of no consequence, the caring nature that he hides from everyone else. The person that nobody else looks deep enough to see. 

But then again, they don’t love the boy next door the way I do.


End file.
